White, Red, Black and Orange
by Eveilae
Summary: [NARUTO VERSION OF SNOW WHITE] Skin white as snow. Eyes red as blood. Hair black as wood. How does Orange fit into his fairy tale? [SasuNaru]
1. Skin White as Snow

**For those that enjoyed **Two Swans** and/or are currently enjoying **The Dingo Ate My Baby **here's a Naruto Version Snow White, for you all. A SasuNaru one, this time. This is one of my all-time favorite pairings and I'm surprised it took me so long to do one of them. Same AU as the other two mentioned above, and though it's not necessary to read either of them to understand this one, a few things about this AU in general are explained there.**

**(x) means NOTE, which are below.**

Title**: White, Red, Black and Orange  
**Chapter: **One**  
Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Sasuke, Itachi, Kakashi, Iruka, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Asuma, Gai, Zabuza, Narutominor: Hokage. Raki  
**Relationships**: slight onesided NaruSasu**

**Notes: **

**1. The Uchiha witch clan (details in **The Dingo Ate My Baby**) lives in Konohagakure, like in the anime/manga.  
****2. Sasuke and Naruto are both about eight or nine years old at this point.  
****3. Kakashi, Iruka, Gai and Asuma are probably relatively young, actually, but . . .well, never mind that.

* * *

**

In fairy tales, there are people who are good, and then there are people who are bad. But Sasuke's life had never _really_ resembled a fairy tale, in spite of it all. He had never met a single person that was completely black as wood, nor had he ever encountered someone who was pure as snow.

Back when he had lived relatively happily with his clan—the Uchiha witch clan of Konohagakure (x)—he had believed this to be true, though. He thought his father, his mother, his _brother_ were all perfect. He thought they were _good_ and would never do a single thing to hurt him. And then he had come home from the academy to find his home pooled with crimson water, red as his Sharingan.

And his brother, dressed in the usual garb of his people, with a simple fan on his back, standing over it all; his face, as always, completely serious. Sasuke had not suspected his brother, even then, even with the blood on his hands.

Asking what had happened was almost too much for the boy, but the question was choked out weakly, nonetheless. He received a cut on his cheek—and it stung, and it felt odd because no one had ever aimed such an attack on him before—in response.

He ran. Afterward, he would feel weak and guilty about it, even though there was no one left to save anyway.

He ran, and Itachi mocked him. "_Looking-glass, Looking-glass, on the wall, who in this land is the strongest of all?"_

And a rumbling voice from inside their house answered. Sasuke could just barely make it out, and no doubt that was Itachi's mischievous intent. _"Thou, O Itachi, art the strongest of all!"_

_I will run away, anywhere, and never come home again_.

Any would think that Itachi went after him, afraid of the truth he would spill, or the vengeance he would try to reap against him when older, but he did not follow the boy. In his mind, this child was no threat to him, and never would be. So he went to join the shadows, confident that he was the strongest Uchiha left alive.

Meanwhile, Sasuke ran. His clothes ripped and got soiled, but he did not care, his eyes melting into red in his fury. The forest was dark, black like his hair and usual eyes, but not as heavy and shadowy as he _felt_. The memory of what had occurred was like a sinister cloud over his heart and it overshadowed everything. The thorns bit him, and the stones made weak attempts to obstruct him, but to no avail.

Finally, he arrived tired and broken at a small house. Without even thinking, he entered, finding it thankfully empty. He would simply rest a little, before the true owners of this house come by, and then he'd escape so far away that Itachi would _never_ find him. The shadows inside the house were beginning to grow long, but Sasuke could make out the white tablecloth, so much like his own pale skin, and the seven bowls that been lain upon it. Sasuke gingerly approached the food, his stomach making itself known for the first time since he had left Konohagakure.

So he nibbled a little on the pieces of the meat and the slices of fruit jumbled on the plates, not taking more from one than from the other. He sipped from every cup equally, which was not an especially wise idea, because each cup was filled with sake. It began to have an immediate effect on the young (x) boy, and he staggered weakly towards the beds—three of which lied under the window where the cool breeze could slip through the cracks, the other five against the opposite wall—nearest to him. With that, he fell into the first one in a drunken lurch. In his confused state, he didn't know one thing from another, and apologized energetically to each six beds before falling—unconscious—onto the seventh.

And the sky grew dark, and the still Sasuke slumbered on. Eventually, light footsteps were heard outside—though not by Sasuke—and the door was opened wide. Seven loud voices made the empty cottage constrict upon itself. It took the group a good couple of seconds to realize the intrusion.

Tsunade was the one who caught sight of her chair, the pillow she carefully placed on it now on the floor.

Asuma asked who had been eating off his plate, seeing it astray and only half full.

Iruka noticed his carefully prepared broccoli soup had been sipped at.

Gai realized with shock that his apple was full of bite marks.

Jiraiya cried out in surprise at seeing a good portion of his sake gone.

Zabuza growled at the sight of his pineapple chunks now dunked into his pea soup.

Kakashi wondered vaguely why the table was pushed a good three feet away from its usual standing place.

Then, as they turned their gaze towards their dear beds, they caught another fright, all seven of them. Someone had been in their bed, had rolled around and had mussed them all up. Except, that is, for Kakashi's, because Sasuke was _still_ in his bed, and was _still_ rolled around his blankets. All they could make out was a large bundle of blankets, so they lit seven candles and approached Kakashi's bed carefully.

And when the light shown upon the flushed face of the young boy, none of them could resist the softening of their hearts—save Zabuza, who was reminded by this boy of things he would have rather have forgotten—for this boy was so vulnerable and full of youth, even in his sleep. Youth was one thing something none of the dwarves could claim to have much of anymore (x). Zabuka would have gladly have woken the boy and demanded an explanation, but the other six were firm on the subject. And the general consensus was to leave the boy be until morn, when a decision could be made clearly.

And so Kakashi slept on top of the cleared tablecloth, because the sensible Iruka had denied the wily masked dwarf a way into his bed. And so they slept through that first night, not knowing it was the first of many to come—to Kakashi and Zabuka's slight displeasure.

This night, Sasuke had the first of his nightmares, and they were like stallions that chased after his restlessly and forever, an eternal reminder of his weakness and cowardice. The black in his heart only grew stronger.

In the morning, the dwarves awoke to find the young boy still resting. They debated quietly on what to do with him, now that the sun was out and pouring his white light upon the earth once more.

Tsunade wanted to force the boy to return home. No doubt there was someone worried about him, and it would be selfish of them to keep him around for themselves.

Asuma took a long drag from his cigarette and agreed vaguely with the woman, earning him a few sideways glances from some of his male companions.

Iruka argued passionately that Tsunade was right, and that they would have to convince the boy that running away his troubles was not the correct way to do things.

Gai cried that this was the mere beginnings of the springtime of this youth, and they he should spend them in whatever he felt in his heart was right.

Jiraiya didn't care very much either way, and said so proudly. Tsunade promptly smacked him upside the head in response. He winked sideways at Zabuza, who simple frowned.

The self-same Zabuza announced they should kill him. He could easily return him and tell everyone about his family, and then what? They all completely ignored _that_ idea.

Kakashi did not respond at all. He stomped over to where the thin boy dozed, and shook him awake promptly.

Sasuke did not welcome the abrupt interruption of his gentle rest, as could be expected. He did not immediately remember the events of the day before, but still he was quick to react in his defense. He pushed at the silver-haired dwarf with the small bit of strength to could manage to gather at that moment, and successfully made Kakashi fall to the floor.

"What. . . where am I?" He asked, his voice still groggy with sleep, his mind blissfully confused.

Asuma snorted lightly, and chewed on the end of his cigarette. "Our house. What are _doing_ here, now _that's _the better question."

But Sasuke was too preoccupied with _memories_ and the sore feeling he was getting in his legs to pay attention to the dwarf's trivial words.

"I . . . Itachi!" Looking around desperately, though he wasn't quite sure _what_ he was searching for, Sasuke jumped up from the bed he had been sleeping on. "I have to get out of here." Without so much as an apology to the dwarves, he moved to rush out of the cottage. They were not slow just because their legs were shorter than the average human's, though. Gai and Zabuza both moved to stop him, one because of didn't want the boy to leave hungry and the other because he thought the little idiot owed them _something_ as compensation.

Sasuke tripped, and fell flat on his face. He did not pick himself up as quickly as he normally would have, the shock of being tripped by two dwarves too much for him.

"Look, I'm sorry for overstaying my welcome, but I needed somewhere to stay for the night . . . my brother, he's . . . shit, I don't have _time_ for this! Itachi wants to _kill_ me! I have to get away before he finds—"

Tsunade put a hand to silence the boy, who had begun to trip over his own words, and she was afraid of losing complete understanding of what he was saying soon. "Wait a minute! Itachi? Who the _hell_ is he, and who the hell are you?"

But Sasuke would not stop to answer her questions, and he simply shook his head instead. "No, I can't _wait_, he'll . . . oh my god, I can't stop _here_ because . . . there was so much there!" He looked up at them, and none of them could deny the sorrow and confusion they found in those pair of ebony eyes.

Iruka could not help himself. He wrapped the boy in a motherly embrace, and soothingly patted his back. "It's okay. He can't get you here. You're completely safe . . . sh . . . " All the others looked at the pair blankly, excluding Kakashi, who looked just plain jealous. Since when had Iruka taken decisions that should have rightfully have been everyone's into his own hands?

"No, my brother . . . he killed them all, and there's no way you could stop him, not just a bunch of _dwarves_," Gai and Asume managed to hold back Zabuza, who took that as a personal insult.

"Who'd he kill, eh?" Jiraiya asked gruffly, crossing his arms across his broad chest as he looked over the scene in front of him carefully. Iruka looked up sharply and gave the white-haired dwarf a scathing look before realizing who he was glaring at, and blushed furiously.

"What's your name?" Iruka asked softly, his arms still wrapped tightly around the boy with the sad, hurt eyes. Thin, white lips muttered something, but he could not make it out. "What did you say?"

"Sasuke. Uchiha Sasuke."

They all froze at those words, even the rambunctious Zabuza. Uchiha. The notorious witch clan that shelved themselves up in Konohagakure. Every single one of the dwarves, each for a different reason, was housed in this little cottage because of their avoidance of Konohagakure. Had the castle, and the Hokage that lived in it, finally come for them despite all their trouble to stay out of his way?

"Sasuke . . . who did Itachi kill?"

Sasuke let out a hiccup that could have been a small sob. "All of them. He . . . there was _so_ much . . . his eyes were red . . . red as _blood_—"

Kakashi interrupted him before he could stutter on. "Who did he kill, boy?"

When he looked up at them, his eyes were no longer black as wood, but red. Red like the crimson water he had seen pooled around his parents just a few hours before. "Everyone. I'm the only other Uchiha left alive."

* * *

A large wet nose poked at the blonde, and he tried to slap it away. Instead of the nose removing itself, the blonde only got a bite on the arm, and a loud, drawn out growl. The boy groaned in discomfort and pulled himself out of his bed. The cap on his head in lopsided, and he rights it groggily. "What do you want, Raki?"

There was an earsplitting bark, and then Raki set off running, obviously expecting the blonde boy to follow her. He did not see himself having too much of a choice in the matter, so he did.

Through the woods the boy and the fox ran. Both knew their way around the place well, as they had lived there all their lives. They had no name for this forest, lush and green and beautiful as they found it. Naruto had grown up with these foxes and had unconsciously assimilated their habits. And foxes needed no name for things.

Would anything change if they decided to call it Forest of the Foxes? Would it change the foxes' position in the large scale of things? It would not give them more power, or make them less hungry in the winter. So this place remained itself, and nothing more.

The blonde knew where they were headed before he even caught sight of the smoke from the chimneystack. The cottage in which the seven dwarves lazed about. He used to play trick on them all the time, but there was only so long you could play around with the heads of the same seven people. The boy didn't know what they were doing there, and it didn't really interest him to know at all, either. As long as they didn't bother him, he would not bother them . . . much.

The foxes had never shown much interest in their either . . . then why was Raki bringing him here? They went around the brick house, and towards the garden, where the boy remembered fondly having dung up potatoes once with some of the foxes. There was a window back there, he remembered vaguely, and sure enough the fox lifted its front paws off the ground to place them on the windowsill above the garden.

The blue-eyed boy made a point the steer around the tomatoes and cabbages. It wouldn't be smart to get him mad, he thought to himself as he approached the window. He kneels just below the windowsill, in case one of those attentive dwarves saw him. He was about to ask what Raki expected from him when her ear twitched. So she wanted him to listen, then?

At first, he couldn't make out anything. Some scuffling, perhaps, but nothing important. Then a voice.

There were _seven_ dwarves living this cottage, and hearing voices inside was usually nothing especially unusual. This was different. This was the voice of a boy, possibly even his own age?

"What do I do now?"

The blonde hadn't hurt a young voice in years . . . if ever. This intrigued him, and he found himself leaning against the cottage wall to get as close as possible. It sounded _sad_ this voice, and it yearned for something. The boy did not know how to read into things, nor did he have the knowledge of how to read people—he could barely read to begin with. But he _felt_ this, and it was different from anything he could have been taught.

He noticed that the fox's gaze was fixated on him, finally, and he frowned. "What is it you brought me here for?" he mouthed. She simple tilted her head towards the cottage. Him. Glancing toward the window above, he wondered if he dared take a peak . . . just a small glance.

Raki caught his eye, and blinked affirmatively. Well, if _Raki_, one of the most reckless foxes among the bunch, thought it would be alright for him to try . . . He lifted his head so that his eyes were just about the windowsill, and his bob of hair was the only thing visible from inside. There, on the bed, with his back turned conveniently towards him, sat the boy.

Skin white was snow. Hair black as wood. The blonde wanted him to turn around so urgently that he nearly spoke. But he managed to hold his tongue and merely stared. Something in him fluttered, and the feeling was completely new. When the pale boy's hand reached up to brush a long lock out of his eyes, the blonde instinctively dunked back down.

He squatted there for who knew how long, but he could not stop his heart from thumping. He shot Raki a frightened look, but she simply began licking between her legs unperturbedly.

Then, slowly, his opened his mouth to speak. His hands clenched and unclenched as he tried to build up the courage to say _something_—anything—so this boy.

"Hi there. My name's Naruto."


	2. Hair Black as Wood

**You know this 'hits' thing Fanfiction gave us authors is really peachy, actually. It doesn't really ACCURATELY tell you how many people read your story, but at least you know a general number. I KNOW YOU LOOKED AT IT! YES, I'M TALKING TO YOU!  
****Not a whole lot happens in this chapter, sorry.**

**SIDE NOTE: Join the Naruto Teenage Dirtbags in neopets. Much much fun, and the people are great. Even if you don't like neopets (like MOI). Ta, enjoy**

**SIDE NOTE TWO: Made a LJ for my stories. It'll tell what I'm working on, when to expect an update & possibly previews. La la la.**

**Well, thank you Lady of Gryffinder, Azamiko, animeperfect, and Ichigo –dattebayo for reviewing.**

**(x) means NOTE, which are below.**

Title**: White, Red, Black and Orange  
**Chapter: **Two**  
Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Sasuke, Naruto, Kakashi, Iruka, Itachi, Kisame,Jiraiya minor: Hokage, Tsunade, Gai, Asuma, Zabuza  
**Relationships**: SasuNaru, slight ItaKisa and some IruKaka if you squint**

**Notes: **

**1. Real life: "**In Japan, there are several places named "Naruto", but only the 鳴戸 area in Tokushima is famous for its whirlpools. The kanji for the first part of that place name is pronounced _na_, and is combined with the Hiragana for _ru_ to form the verb "to sound; to make a sound" (鳴る). The verb _naru_ is often used to talk about ringing bells or alarms. (The kanji 鳴 is also used in other aural verbs; e.g., _naku_ 鳴く, which means "birds are singing"...) Anyway, the reason the famous ocean area is named Naruto is because of the sounds you can hear there -- apparently the roaring and crashing of waves caused by the whirlpool(s) is quite loud." **Sorry if the kanji don't show up. I hope you get the general gist of it.  
****2. **These italicized phrases are from the song_ Don't Fade Away_ by Milla (Jovovich).  
**3. **Sasuke and Naruto are now eleven-ish.  
**4. **Ah, you thought it would be white, red, and black rocks, didn't you! Okay, probably not. Well, in the real story the witch uses silk of these color laces. "Yellow (gold) represents the soul, red (the colour of blood) represents the body and blue represents the intellect."  
**5.** These italicized phrases are from the song _If You Go Away _by Emiliana Torrini.  
**6. **Does anyone have a suggestion for another name for the Uchiha witch clan? And if you're clever, perhaps one for the Hyuga Witch Clan as well?

* * *

They didn't look at each other, these two boys. One sat on his borrowed bed, sitting on top of the messy green sheets that made him think of plants for some reason. The other swatted among the carrots and potatoes, which always made him think of supper. 

Sasuke and Naruto. They talked about this and that, and their conversation could go from frivolous to angry in mere seconds. Why are you here? That was the only question they did not dare ask, as if it might get the other thinking. Perhaps the other would realize that there wasn't any reason to be there, and they'd stop coming.

Why didn't Sasuke live with his family? Why had he appeared suddenly and begun living with these seven mysterious dwarves, who had come just as abruptly themselves, years before. Sasuke answered cautiously, and vaguely, in such a way that his answer was barely an answer at all. And so Naruto knew very little about Sasuke's life before the cottage. Only that he was scared to go back—Naruto inferred this himself; Sasuke did not say this outright—and that he probably didn't have anything to return to anyway.

He felt sad for the black and white boy.

Why did Naruto live alone, surrounded only by foxes and the wild beauty of the forest? Who had created him, and then abandoned him here despite his youth? Naruto did not understand subtle, nor did he know how to be vague. He just simply did not know the answer to the inquiries. He had never known his parents, and told Sasuke as much. As for the foxes, they had practically taken him in, no matter how odd that may have sounded.

Naruto could almost _taste_ Sasuke's envy, and he didn't dare ask why. Why would someone be envious of another's parent-less existence?

Naruto did not have to tell the other boy to not mention his visits to the dwarves. It was almost a given. Sasuke did not know the response they might have to his affair with Naruto. All he knew and understood was that he did not want to stop the daily discussions he had with the boy for anything.

While Sasuke was not sitting by the window, carefully avoiding any site of the other boy, he was training with Kakashi. The silver-haired dwarf had been decided—against Sasuke's will; he claimed to have no need for a teacher—to be the black-haired boy's instructor. Sasuke had expected to show this 'teacher' just how much he did not have any need for him, and instead ended up looking like a complete fool.

The dwarf beat him with just one hand, and an eye.

The dwarf looks down on him with obvious distain. "Well, then, little boy Uchiha isn't as great as he thinks he is, eh?" The black-haired boy throws himself at him, but the dwarf dodges the attack easily. "Ready for Lesson One, are we?"

Sasuke glares at him in response.

* * *

"No! Naruto, those are _poisonous_!" Iruka slaps the berries out of the blonde hands. He looks up at the brunette with sad eyes. _Sorry_, they say, and Iruka immediately feels guilty for making the boy feel bad. 

"C'mon let's find ourselves some fruits, then," Iruka adds, placing a hand on his shoulder in a friendly gesture. The light returns to the boy's eyes, and he is suddenly jumping with excitement. "I know where to find some! Can I show you, can I, can I?"

Iruka lets out an amused laugh. This boy, he is so eager to please, it's amazing. Actually, the way he's been raised, it's not surprising. Fox's are easy to please, and there's been no one else. Well, lately, him, but he's not hard to please either.

Kakashi would say otherwise, but . . .

"Let's go."

It has been a few months now, since Iruka first caught sight of the boy. He had at first thought that he was a lost child from Konohagakure, and only followed him. After a while, though, he had realized his mistake. This boy didn't speak but in grunts and growls, like the foxes that surrounded him. He looked wild, and wore no clothes. This was no child of Konohagakure.

And so he approached the boy, carefully, as one would a wild creature. He found to his surprise the boy had always known of the seven dwarves living in the cottage, and had watched them. He even had taught himself a good bit of the language.

So he had given himself the task of teaching this boy, civilizing him like the human being he was. He gave him the name Naruto.

There was actually a story behind that. When Iruka had begun teaching him the alphabet, but Naruto had added his own letter to the list—a spiral—and announced that it was him. It reminded Iruka sharply of his homeland, where there had been a sea famous for its whirlpools called Naruto (x).

"You're Naruto, then?" The boy looked at him in confusion, and Iruka calmly explained it to him. The blue-eyed boy immediately accepted the name as his own. It was possibly one of the few things anyone had ever given the boy.

With every smile, with every friendly word, Iruka gave him more and more, without even knowing it.

Another thing he did not know was that he was not the only dwarf who had taken an interest in Naruto. Jiraiya watched curiously from his perch in the treetops. Perhaps Iruka had not noticed, but there was something _off_ about this boy. Something old, and something dangerous, and he wasn't sure what to call it.

And so he watched the boy. Therefore, he knew of the rendezvous he was having with the black-haired menace they had allowed into their house. Jiraiya didn't understand why he should feel pity for the young Uchiha. They'd all suffered, and it was good that this boy knew the feeling now. He would now be prepared for it in the future. But of course, Tsunade and Iruka were softies with children, and no one wanted to argue with the motherly idiots.

It didn't matter now. If Sasuke even _tried_ to escape, Zabuza would be after him so fast he wouldn't know what hit him.

He wondered offhandedly what the two boys spoke about. He doubted there was anything seedy mentioned—they were both _children_, after all—so he wasn't very interested. If he had been, he would have made the effort of finding out.

Eh, let them have their fun, Jiraiya thinks. They'll have little enough of it. One lost his whole family to his brother, and the other was abandoned and left to die—Jiraiya assumes whoever left him in the forest didn't expect him to _live_—very early on. If that is any indication of how their life is going to be like, well . . .

Good luck with that.

Time passed, as time does.

Naruto still sits outside Sasuke's window and they talk. Occasionally, though, they'll remain silent, and it seems as if they can hear the other's heartbeat, even through their distance.

_Hello sunshine, please don't fade away._ (x)

Although Naruto has the hair bright as the large star floating in space, for him, Sasuke is the sun, however corny he knows that sounds. The foxes raised him and Iruka taught him, but they were like his mothers and father; they could not be a friend.

Sasuke was his.

_No, no. Don't fade away._

Naruto is too intense for Sasuke. Even back home in Konohagakure, before . . . what happened, he was used to less light. The clouds made the sun a creature that did not frequent the people with its presence as much as the rain did.

Now, more than ever, Sasuke wants to be in the darkness. There he can be blind and nothing seems real. There he can hide himself, and Itachi will never find him. Not in a million years.

Naruto forces the light onto him, and pulles him into the spotlight.

_I'm stepping over shadows from your smile; losing myself in these rays of light._

The dwarves catch the slight changes in Sasuke. They've all managed to survive this long in the harsh world because they _aren't _idiots. They notice that Sasuke went from the boy who would not look at them while quietly eating his supper, to the boy who will occasionally insert his opinion in the conversation.

Tsunade is not sure what caused this change, but whatever it is, she finds herself grateful. Pathetically sad little boys do her mood no good.

Asuma keeps the boy on careful watch nonetheless. Avengers are dangerous, as most of them know from prior experience.

Iruka is not blind. He detects the changes of both boys and puts two and two together. He does not go as far as to _follow_ the blonde, but he sees the grin that appears on his tanned face whenever the paler boy is mentioned.

Gai leaves for a good couple of months on his annual trip back home. No one ever dares to ask why, at least not until Sasuke comes along and sticks his nose where it doesn't belong. When the boy questions the man, his eyes cloud with tears, but he does not respond.

Jiraiya asks Iruka what he thinks about the fox boy's potential. Though Iruka is surprised that the white-haired man would even speak to him, though not that he knows of Naruto, Iruka responds appropriately.

Zabuza keeps to himself, same as always, and looks suspiciously to the others as if he is sulking.

Kakashi makes Sasuke's life hell in training whenever possible, but the boy with the unusual red eyes finds that his teacher is more like him than either of them would like to admit.

_See our genius warp what we created._

_No, don't fade away._

* * *

Looking-glass, Looking-glass, on the wall, Who in this land is the strongest of all? 

_Oh, Itachi, thou art strongest of all I see,  
But over the hills, where the seven dwarfs dwell,  
Your brother is still alive and well,  
And few will be so strong as he._

Itachi stares at the looking glass blankly, his eyes slipping into red without him seeming to realize it. "Sasuke? That weak child that was not worth my time? I don't believe it." But he knows very well that the looking glass does not lie—cannot lie.

"Well, then, there is a very easy remedy for this," the man mutters to himself, slipping on his Akatsuki robes as his mind tries to wrap itself around this topic of his irritating sibling. It's been a little more than two years (x) since the massacre; how much could the boy have grown since then?

Itachi holds back a laugh at the mere thought. There's no way the boy is even vaguely near the level Itachi was at at his age, much less his strength _now_. But still . . . Itachi dislikes surprises. Things go as he plans, or they do not go at all.

Sasuke is not going as planned. Itachi had expected him to be killed by the wild foxes that ran feral through the forest Sasuke had scamper to, his tail between his legs, but apparently Itachi had forgotten about the conveniently placed dwarves. Yes, he knows of the seven. Quite of few of them are criminals, and all of them are escaping a painful past. Oh, it might even be fun to bring some of that back up.

But first things first, how will Itachi destroy the little nuisance?

After sitting in his large—and very comfortable—leather chair, and thinking it through carefully, he eventually decides the sly approach will do quite nicely. He'll bewitch a necklace to _keep_ wrapping itself around his skinny little throat until his breath is all gone. He likes this idea a good bit, and wonders what kind of jewelry would appeal to his younger sibling. He has no sense of style or fashion, but he doubts that Sasuke did either.

"Kisame!" He cries, calling for the man that was probably loitering by the moat. Yes, Kisame had insisted that there be a moat around their . . . humble abode. By humble abode, Itachi means small fortress in which Kisame and Itachi both spend a good portion of their time in between evil schemes.

After a few minutes, the fish man comes in, an annoyed expression on his face. "What? Do you want me to paint your nails again?" The idea peaks a little interest for Itachi, but not enough to dissuade him from his idea.

"No! Do buy some of that purple stuff, though, won't you?" Kisame rolls his eyes, which would be unnerving for anyone but Itachi, and perhaps Kisame's mother. He waits patiently for Itachi to continue. "Well, it seems my little brother will soon grow to be a little _bother_, and I'd rather have him be a little corpse before then. Do you mind helping me out a bit?"

A large grin spreads up through Kisame's face, and Itachi feels like giggling inanely. Kisame smiling is very cute, in his opinion. Of course he doesn't begin giggling, because he has a good bit more pride than that.

"I'll take that as a yes. Well, Kisame, what kind of necklace do you think my brother would like? After all, I _did_ miss his birthday this year . . . "

Kisame pauses to thinks for a second, and then digs his hand into a hidden pocket. He rummages until he finds what he is searching for. He produces three colorful stones, one yellow, one red and one blue (x). Itachi inspects each carefully before deeming them fine for his use. "One more thing, Kisame, could you _please_ kill me an old peddler woman and bring me her clothes? I don't want to spoil the surprise for my dearest sibling, do I?"

"No, Itachi, you do not. Don't forget to cook dinner. No fish," Kisame replies, already halfway out the door.

Itachi and Kisame just work well together.

* * *

_If you go away, on this summer day, then you might as well take the sun away._(x) 

"Bah, Naruto, I'm going to go away someday! I've _got_ to avenge my family and I'm gonna have to . . . well, revive the Uchiha witch clan.(x)" Sasuke finds a small blush travels up his neck at these words. He know vaguely how those things work but . . . well, he doesn't want to _do_ those things! He doesn't know too many girls, except for his mother and Tsunade. If he's supposed to have babies with someone like his mother . . . well, that wouldn't be so bad.

But he never wants to start a clan with someone as scary as Tsunade.

And she doesn't know how to make cookies, either.

_But if you stay, I'll make a day like no day has been or will be again._

"Why?" And for the first time since they'd begun talking with each other, Naruto stands up, and the black-hair boy can see his bright orange self clearly.

"W-what do you think you're doing, dobe?" Sasuke asks, desperately look around to make sure that no one has seen the boy peek his head through the window. No one's home to begin with, but . . . better safe than sorry. He also just wants an excuse to not look at Naruto.

He's so _orange_.

"I'm asking you _why_! Why do you have to leave? Can't you just forget about your brother and live here? I bet Iruka could get rid him!" The whiskered boy holds the brunette in high esteem, and Sasuke knows this. Sasuke also knows that if Iruka were foolish enough to try and defeat his brother, Itachi would eat him alive.

The white-skinned boy doesn't have the heart to tell him so.

"Look, I can't _stay _here. I can't revive a clan with _Tsunade_!" Naruto just gives him a confused look—Sasuke is now sneaking glances at him from beneath his bangs—and suddenly it's very clear.

"You don't know how babies are made, do you?"

"I . . .er . . . Iruka told me that a man plants a seed inside a woman, but without killing her. I'm guess they numb her somehow so that she doesn't feel the shovel going in her stomach. Does that mean woman are made of dirt? I would ask Iruka, but he turns red when I talk about it. And . . . so are you!" Naruto is fuming now, irritated that everyone else finds the topic of gardening so embarrassing.

"He doesn't plant _that_ kind of seed, idiot," Sasuke mutters.

Quite abruptly, Naruto is in Sasuke's face, having jumped the windowsill in one quick bound. "What kind of seed is it, then, if you're so . . . _freakin'_ . . . smart?" With every word he enunciated the blue-eyed boy got a little closer, until Sasuke could smell the dirt and _wilderness_ on him.

He leans over slowly and chastely presses his lips against the other boys. He had seen his father and mother doing it, as well as many of the older generations back at home. He quickly pulls away, afraid of what he has done. What had possessed him to do that to _Naruto_?

"What the hell was _that_ for?" Of course. The idiot didn't have the slightest idea what a kiss was. That was _just_ like him. Well, then it had been no risk to Sasuke.

"It . . . I wanted to shut you up!"

The two young boys are silent for a little while. Each of them suddenly realized that they had crossed the line that had been carefully drawn for their relationship. They wouldn't see each other, and they would not touch each other. That way what they had belonged to them, and to them_ only_.

Naruto did not know the meaning of _possessions_, but maybe that's why he was possessive of _his_ Sasuke. Now that he had a clear image of him in his mind's eyes; now that he had knew what the white-skinned boy's skin felt like, it was something someone could take away.

Sasuke had always been given Itachi's leftovers. The leftover love of his parents, the leftover respect of his clan, and even the leftover clothes that didn't fit the older boy any longer. For once he had something that belonged to him first, and would not belong toItachi. Not ever. Yet as long as he only heard Naruto's voice there was the chance that the boy was only in his own head. That way, there was _no_ way Itachi could ever have this boy.

But now Naruto was real boy, and Itachi could take anything away, just like he had taken away the lives of his clansmen away.

_If you go away, as I know you will, you must tell the world to stop turning 'til you return again, if you ever do, for what good is love, without loving you?_

"Sasuke . . . don't leave." Naruto doesn't sound weak, nor does he sound demanding. Sasuke doesn't know quite how to describe it, but he's looking up at the blonde in surprise.

_But if you stay, I'll make you a night, like no night has been or will be again. I'll sail on your smile; I'll ride on your touch; I'll talk your eyes that I love so much._

Sasuke doesn't answer.

And then there's a knock on the door.

* * *

**You thought I forgot didn't you? HAPPY BIRTHDAY UCHIHA SASUKE!**


	3. Eyes Red as Blood

**Actually, the italicized words were from a song. Exactly what the songs' names are and who sings them are in the Notes of the last chapter. Psh, I'm not a poet.**

**I wanna do another one of these fairy tale retellings, but I don't know what pairing to do. Anyone want to suggest something?**

**Sorry for the delay. I got sidetracked with Bleach and LJ. xP**

**(x) means NOTE, which are below.**

Title**: White, Red, Black and Orange  
**Chapter: Three  
Genre**: Fantasy/Romance  
**Characters**: major: Sasuke, Naruto, Itachi, Kisame,Kakashi, Iruka, Jiraiya minor: Tsunade, Gai, Asuma, Zabuza  
**Relationships**: SasuNaru, ItachiKisame**

**Notes: **

**1. **Remember, yellow (gold) is supposed to stand for the soul, so Sasuke unconsciously believes Naruto has a bright, powerful soul. Or something, heh.  
**2. **Still the same song by Emiliana Torrini.  
**3. **I don't know why I make the Itachi tidbits so odd. I think it's SELF-RELIANCE's fault. This is a reference to something my sister always goes around saying. She's silly.

* * *

The two of them look towards the door, and then at each other for a second, before Sasuke pulls the blonde off the bed and under it. "Stay _quiet_," he hisses viciously, and stands up again, ready to answer the door calmly.

"Pretty things to sell, very cheap, very cheap," calls a thickly accented, rasping female voice. Comforted by the fact that this could not be his brother, he pushes open the heavy oak door.

"Hello?" He greets warily to the old woman standing on the doorstep. She gives him a dry smile, as if she is unused to such a gesture. Sasuke is unused to receiving them, so he doesn't catch the falseness behind it.

"Oh, kind sir, you look the kind of boy sure to have a nice girl friend squirreled away. Would you be interested in buying her a nice gift? Or perhaps you, yourself would like to adorn yourself?" She brings her basket out before he can interrupt her and say he's not interested. Once she's uncovered it to show her items, Sasuke finds he can't say a thing.

Their cord are all the same, dark brown leather, but the stones are each a different color. Yellow, red and blue. The first that comes into his head when he sees them is that the yellow stone would look amazing on Naruto (x).

He blushes immediately after, ashamed to be thinking something like that about another boy.

Even so . . . "How much for the yellow and blue ones?" He'll somehow find a subtle way to give it to Naruto, and he'll keep the blue one for himself. That way he won't be able to convince himself that he's doing this for Naruto. No, he's simply being thoughtful, is all.

The old peddler woman gives him a toothy smile and replies in a grating tone that for a boy so lovely as he, no price would be right. After all, a child deserves to look nice, and those stones will looks beautiful around his neck. Sasuke receives the two necklaces, gruffly relaying his thanks. Closing the door tightly behind him, he glances at the stones in his hands. The yellow one is bright and it shines like the devil.

It's as if it were made for Naruto.

The said blonde shoves his head out from under the bed, his cerulean eyes gazing at the white-skinned boy curiously. "Who was she? What'd ya get, what'd ya get?" He scrambles out from the cover of the bed's underside, and Sasuke quickly shoves the hand with the necklaces clutched in its fingers behind his back.

"Wait! Close your eyes." Naruto's mouth spreads into a happy grin, glad to be included in a game, in a mystery. Sasuke, on the other hand, wonders forlornly how to hand the blonde his gift without looking like a fool. "Don't peek," Sasuke warns gently, taking careful, light steps towards the smaller boy. An idea is forming in his head, and he wonders how the other boy will react.

He carefully places the leather cord around Naruto's tanned neck, and ties it tenderly in the back.

The blue-eyed blonde feels the cool touch of white on brown, and he feels a chill run down his spine, like the first snowflake in the winter falling onto his bared skin. He doesn't even think about opening his eyes—he's enjoying the feeling of closeness too much.

_We'll sail on the sun; we'll ride on the rain; we'll talk to the trees and worship the wind_.(x)

Sasuke steps back to inspect his handiwork—only to watch helplessly as the cord keeps tightening . . . of its own accord.

"Sasuke . . ." Naruto's voice gasps out as his eyes flash open. "It's too ti—" His wide-eyed expression doesn't seem to understand the fact that Sasuke isn't even touching the necklace anymore. . .

"Naruto!" As the blonde falls onto his knees, the black-haired boy tries to pull the cord away from the tanned skin which it had imbedded itself into. His bare fingers didn't stand a chance against the enchanted material.

Still, he pries, and keeps trying, and trying, even when the last breath has passed through Naruto's lips.

And so the seven dwarves find Sasuke kneeling over a breathless body, small sobs escaping his lips in sharp hiccups.

Tsunade immediately rushes to the small body lying on the ground, not even taking the time to ask who he is, or what he is doing in their home. His life is at stake, and there will be time for answers later.

Asuma's brow furrows, and he lights another cigarette. There are a good number of questions running through his head, but like Tsunade, he knows now is not the time.

Iruka, for obvious reasons, recognizes the blonde immediately, and cries out in surprise. He, too, dashes towards them.

Gai inquires what a good number of them are wondering. Who is this boy?

Jiraiya doesn't move, nor does his expression change. He also recognizes Naruto, but he's not so intent on saving him. If the boy will die so easily, then Jiraiya doesn't want anything to do with him to begin with.

Zabuza's serious expression doesn't change either. His form crowds the small doorway, and he watches the scene unfurl stoically.

Kakashi glances at Sasuke severely, and manages to pull him away from the cobalt-eyed child.

_If you go away, as I know you must, there'll be nothing left of the world to trust._

Sasuke barely notices Kakashi, or any of the other dwarves. It's clear now, in his mind, what must have occurred. It was Itachi, of course. Sasuke had allowed himself to grow weak and careless, and Naruto has suffered for it. And now Naruto isn't _breathing_.

_Just an empty room, full of empty space, like the empty look I see on your face._

Iruka and Tsunade are trying desperately to rip the cord away from Naruto's throat, but even they find themselves as powerless as Sasuke did. Tsunade turns her eyes to face Jiraiya, and the look she gives his is unreadable for Sasuke. Jiraiya on the other hand, seems to understand it without effort. "Move aside," he says condescendingly, rolling his eyes are the scarred man and the big-breasted woman.

Whatever the dwarf with the white hair does, Sasuke does not catch it. Could his eyes not adjust to the speed in which he did it? Did the man do anything? He wasn't sure, and no one ever really answered him.

All he knows at that moment is that Naruto's eyes are open wide, his pupils large and dilated, and a shallow breath escaping his parted lips.

"Naruto!" He cries, and ripping his arms away from Kakashi.

_I'll be dying slowly 'til the next hello._

Naruto's eyes are unfocused, and Iruka's trying to check him over, although Naruto looks _fine_ in Zabuza's eyes. Sasuke tries to say something to him—he wants to ask Naruto's forgiveness; how could he let this happen to Naruto?—but Iruka shushes him.

"I'll take him home," Iruka announces, ignoring the looks he gets from all the other dwarves. How is it he knows where this blonde boy lives? Actually, two dwarves don't have this reaction. Jiraiya, for one, because he always _knows_ why, and Zabuza, for another, because he doesn't care in the slightest.

As Iruka picks up the blue-eyed boy from the ground, and heads for the open door, Sasuke follows in a dream, only stopped by Kakashi's outstretched hand. "No. You've got answers to give us, boy."

The black haired glares at his teacher angrily but doesn't say anything. He understand that after what he's done he doesn't have the _right_ to argue. "Go ahead and _ask_, then," he replies in his nastiest voice.

"Don't you get snippy," Zabuza warns in a low, dangerous voice, his hands traveling to his belt, where Sasuke knows he keeps his knife. "It's bad enough that you've practically put up a sign to light up to the path to us. If you start acting high and might now, I'll slit your throat right through without even thinking twice."

Sasuke knows the threat can very much so be backed up, and wisely keeps his mouth shut.

"So, then, what happened?" Tsunade asks gently, as if trying to make up for the other's rough actions.

Sasuke grunts and tells them a shortened version of the story, not willing to admit the fact he had stupidly accepted a gift from a stranger.

"So you put it on that other boy to see if it was safe to wear?" Asuma mutters gruffly, and takes another drag on his cigarette. "That's pretty pathetic, kid."

"No!" Sasuke cries, "I only wanted to give it to him!" He blushes immediately after, and looks down at the floor. He feels like a fool.

"So you have a crush on the boy, now do you?" This time Kakashi speaks up. Sasuke's cheek only flush a deeper red, and a few of the dwarves chuckle at this.

If only that could have been the end to it, Naruto saved by opportune timing and Sasuke spared some ridicule and punishment because of overly soft hearts. But no, Itachi soon heard that his stupid younger brother had not shared the fate of so many others that crossed his path.

"Damn it all to hell and the four corners of the earth!" he curses, tossing his goblet angrily out the window.

"Stop wasting good wine, you child," Kisame responds curtly, taking another bite of his banana nut bread. Itachi ignores the fish-like man completely, and stomps out of the room. This only backs up Kisame's claim that Itachi is oddly perpetually trapped in the mindset of an angry six year old.

Itachi heads into his bedroom where he faces the truthful mirror squarely.

_Looking-glass, Looking-glass, on the wall, Who in this land is the—_

"Goddamn it, Itachi! Stop asking the mirror questions and figure out an answer to your own stupid problems on your own! You're so fucking _dependent_!"

"And you leave a rank odor in every room you step in! We've all got our faults, so shut up!" Itachi slams the door to shut out any more of the Kisame commentary, but he still doesn't finish his question, and throws a red cloth over the mirror to cover its reflective surface. Damn. Okay, then.

He'll just attack Sasuke with something. That shouldn't be too hard. Now, it can't be an obvious attack, or else the boy will have a chance to run away, and prolonged battles are irritating. Itachi wants to win, and he wants to win _now_.

Hmm, after a short break to steal of the banana nut bread he forgot to taste, he sits down in his comfortable chair, and has a good thinking. He finally stumbles upon a pleasing solution, which he brings to Kisame immediately. Kisame agrees to bring him what he needs . . . after dinner. "It's your turn today, Itachi."

Itachi grumbles his way back to his room. "Goddamn it, I don't get any respect." (x)


End file.
